Global News Podcast - Families accuse Hamas of deliberately starving hostages

Episode Date: August 5, 2025

The brother of Israeli hostage Evyatar David has told the BBC that a video released by Hamas shows he is a "human skeleton''. Ilay David spoke as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was reported to be preparing to expand military operations in Gaza. Also: Britain's first female spy chief Stella Rimington dies, and the new party trend in India - fake weddings.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment. Get in touch: [e-mail]

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You're listening to the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. Hello, I'm Oliver Conway. This edition is published in the early hours of Tuesday, the 5th of August. The brother of an Israeli hostage seen in a recent video says Hamas is deliberately starving him. Meanwhile, a former Israeli security official tells us a plan to expand the military operation in Gaza is a big mistake. President Trump has threatened India with even bigger tariffs for buying Russian oil, and why Elon Musk could soon get even richer. Also in the podcast, Stella Remington, Britain's first female spy chief, has died. One was thought to be okay to deal with the papers.

I mean, I could say to type and make the tea. It was a bit more than that. But women were not regarded as suitable to do the sharp-end intelligence work. We're back at her life. In our previous podcast, we heard that. the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Nessoniyahu is considering expanding military operations against Hamas. Well, the latest reports suggest he's made up his mind, with an official in his office quoted as saying, a decision has been made, we're going to occupy the Gaza Strip. If that's the

plan, it goes against the wishes of many Israelis. Over the weekend, tens of thousands demonstrated in Tel Aviv calling for an end to the war. Meanwhile, hundreds of retired senior Israeli security officials have written to President Trump, urging him to put pressure on Mr. Netanyahu to end the war, saying Hamas no longer poses a strategic threat. Army Ayelon, a former director of the Shinbet Security Agency, spoke to my colleague, Sean Lay. I think that it is clear to the generals,

in the general staff today, I'm not speaking about former generals and generals. It is clear for them that there is a contradiction between our ability to bring back the hostages and expanding the war. You have to understand today that the government do not represent the Israeli people.

About 70% of the Israelis demand immediate releasing of hostages and to put an end to the war. But in the end, the release of the hostages is down to Hamas, is that? Well, not exactly, because the tragedy is that Hamas will do it immediately.

If Hamas is saying, we are ready to release all the hostages and to end the war. The problem is that Hamas do not understand that for us, the Hamas, an organization, staying in power in Gaza is not an option. Now, everything starts with the wrong Israeli policy during the last two years, but especially after the 7th of October, because it was clear that unless we shall come with a clear idea on the day after, there will be no replacement to Hamas.

Now, if you see today all our neighbors, there is an Egyptian initiative, and in ways they're saying, okay, once you will leave Gaza, we are ready to enter with Palestinian people. But when Bezalel Smotrich, the Minister of Violence, says, as he said last month, the Gaza is an inseparable part of the land of Israel, are you not convinced that it's not the policy of this government to withdraw from Gaza? This government does not have any policy. This is a problem. They just want to stay in power. Anyhow, this is not acceptable by majority of Israelis. Only a small minority believe that we should do it. And I don't think that Prime Minister, although I do not support him, I think that he still understand the implications, not only on our foreign policy and the reaction of not only, the international community, but our neighbors. It will endanger the peace with Egypt. It will break the peace with Jordan.

So it will be a major, major conflict. Hamas are as cruel as animals. But I have no expectations from Hamas. Hamas is not my partner. Hamas should be eliminated. But in order to eliminate, in order to defeat Hamas, we have to create a political horizon. We do not understand that from the military point of view,

We achieved everything which is achievable. And would you explain why you hope that President Trump will intervene? Because that's who you've addressed your letter to. He believed in the economy. He hate wars. And he is closer to understand that this is totally against the American interest the way he believed should be the American interest. Army Ayelon.

Well, the families of the hostages are still reeling from the footage of emaciated captives in Gaza published by Hamas. and Islamic Jihad. The brother of one of the hostages described him as a human skeleton. John Donison sent this report from Jerusalem. Eviatar David, loving life with his family a few years ago.

A duet on a guitar with his brother, Eli. In the days before his nightmare began. In Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, I asked Eli about his younger sibling. He's the kindest, sweetest soul I know. He really loves music. And he plays the guitar since he's very young. And I play with the piano. So we play music every Friday together and we sing songs at my parents.

And actually that's one of the things that really holds me. Bedeviatar has been held hostage in Gaza for 667 days. This week, Hamas released a video of him, looking emaciated. Seeing those images of my brother as a human skeleton, we understood it's a new kind of cruelty. It's worse than the Taliban, then al-Qaeda, worse than ISIS. It's the lowest you can get. Eli says he trusts Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to do the right thing to try to free his brother. but many of the hostage families disagree.

They say if Mr Netanyahu expands his offensive in Gaza, it will be a disaster for Israel and for their loved ones. John Donelson. The Republicans currently have a majority of just seven seats in the US House of Representatives. Whether the Democrats are able to overturn that in the midterm elections next year could well hinge on a vote in Texas. Republican state lawmakers are hoping to redraw the electoral boundaries there to give themselves an extra five seats in the House.

Democrats object and have taken action to try to block the move. This is State Representative James Tolariko from Texas. If you're seeing this video, my Democratic colleagues and I have just left our beloved state to break quorum and stop Trump's redistricting power grab. By leaving Texas, the Democratic lawmakers hoped to prevent a vote. But the Republican Governor Greg Abbott has now issued warrants for their arrest. One of the Democrats, Ron Reynolds, said they were not breaking. any law, and Governor Abbott was using scare tactics.

I can't speak for my colleagues, but I'm willing to hold out as long as it takes to kill this racial gerrymandering that would do much disservice to black and brown communities, particularly, but Texas across the board, and this would have an impact on the nation. The balance of power could rest with these five seats that Trump and Abbott are trying to steal from Texans. So can the Democrats' tactics work? A question for our North America correspondent, David Willis. Ultimately, I think, Oliver, they may prove futile, but by doing this, the 50-plus Texas Democrats who have taken this course of action are managing to draw attention to what they believe are undemocratic moves by President Trump and his party to bolster their chances in the US House of Representatives come next year's midterm elections. And that's something that Mr. Trump has his eye on because that did not happen.

the mid-term elections during his first term as president, of course. And he has, in Greg Abbott, the governor of Texas, a loyal lieutenant and someone who is very keen to deliver on the president's behalf. Texas has 38 congressional seats of which the Republicans hold 25, and Donald Trump is hoping to add five more Republican-leaning seats to the U.S. House of Representatives tally. But the move by these missing Democrats thwarts Mr Abbott's move to press ahead with a vote on the redistricting measures because in Texas at least two-thirds of lawmakers need to be present for any laws to be passed.

And this, of course, denies the Texas House of its quorum. Now, in many places this kind of redistricting would be described as election rigging. Is it legal? Well, gerrymandering is the term that's often used, Oliver. It's worth making the point that both parties are guilty of engaging in it. Governors in some democratic states have floated the possibility of doing exactly the same thing, redrawing their own state maps in retaliation if the Texas law gets passed. And in an interview with Fox News, Texas's governor Greg Abbott said that the US Supreme Court had

determined that there was, I quote, nothing illegal about shaping districts to a majority party's advantage. And he even acknowledged, Mr. Abbott, that what was going on there in Texas did amount to gerrymandering. We've had the Democratic governor of New York, Kathy Hochel, with whom some of the Texas Democrats

have been meeting, saying that if Republicans are willing to rewrite the rules, then her party has no choice, if you like, but to do the same. She said, we have to fight fire with fire. And meanwhile, the absent Democrats in Texas are making pretty clear that they've no plans to return there. As subpoenas issued in Texas, carry no authority, I'm told, elsewhere. And they insist that they are not breaking the law and they are merely seeking to, as they put it, preserve democracy. Our North America correspondent, David Willis.

Last week, Donald Trump announced he would impose a 25, percent tariff on India, despite describing the country as a friend. On Monday, he threatened to increase that substantially, accusing India of buying massive amounts of oil from Russia and then selling it on for big profits. Last week, the US President said India and Russia could take their dead economies down together. India said the latest threats were unjustified and unreasonable. This analysis of President Trump's latest statement from our South Asia regional editor, and Barasan Etirajan. He's putting more pressure on the Indian government, especially on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who often said President Donald Trump was India's friend and my friend.

They both are paid on stage in a couple of meetings in front of thousands of Indian and Indian origin Americans in the US, also back in India. So it is kind of putting Mr. Modi in a very embarrassing situation like the way Mr. Trump has been coming out with his statements. No, previously he talked about India buying oil from Russia here. He goes one step further where he says they don't care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian war mission. He's making this accusation. So that is putting a moral dilemma on India. It's not only about business.

Now, India needs to look at in a different angle. Now, why he's talking about is India is the second biggest buyer of Russian oil after China. and what they do, they send it to the refineries and they export it back to Europe and other countries. So that is where they are buying. And Russia is the biggest oil supply in the past few years because it is cheaper than other oil-producing countries and what India's argument has been.

Like, you know, we will buy wherever we get it in a cheaper oil. Number one, number two, already US put pressure on India not to buy oil from Venezuela and Iran. So now if you're going to put, pressure on Russia, where they are going to go and buy because Saudi Arabia and other oil countries, the prices will be more. So that is India's dilemma now. So how might India respond? What are the options? U.S. is India's largest trading partner. The bilateral trade is about $130 billion. And the trade is in favor of India by more than $45 billion. And that's

why Trump very often says that, and I need to balance this trade, because India is gaining more in this trade. Now, both countries have been talking about reaching a free trade agreement. In fact, they talked about signing this agreement anytime soon to avoid this tariff. But then there were some bottlenecks. For example, US wants to push more agricultural products, which is a no-go area for any Indian politician because half the Indian population directly or indirectly involved in agriculture, even though it is not a money-spinning industry. It's only like 15, 16% of the GDP. The sheer number of people, small-time farmers, dairy farmers that depend, the livelihood depends on agriculture.

And if you're going to import cheap American agro products, dairy, it's going to have a huge impact. Yeah, by the sound of it, neither side looks willing to back down. Because India's options at the moment are, if you are going to respond, you know, given President Trump's nature, you don't know how he is going to respond further, is it going to aggravate the situation. They are waiting and watching. They don't want to respond to every single social media post. And Rasa, it's a Raja.

Here in Britain, the death's been announced of Stella Rimmington, the first female head of the Domestic Security Service, MI5. She was 90. She was the first MI5 boss to be publicly named. Alice Adelaeckley looks back at her life. Stella Rimmington never set out to become a spy. she studied English and archive administration at university. But in 1969, while bored with life in India as a diplomat's wife,

she was asked to assist another official and only later realised she'd been recruited into the security service, MI5. That tap on the shoulder was her gateway to what she later said had been a fun and wonderful career. It was dominated by Russian espionage in the Cold War and the troubles in Northern Ireland. By the late 1970s, she was a rising star, investigating Moscow's attempts to infiltrate Britain's campaign for nuclear disarmament,

but also battling very old-fashioned men at the top, as she told the BBC in 1999. One was thought to be okay to deal with the papers. I mean, I could say to type and make the tea. It was a bit more than that. But women were not regarded as suitable to do the sharp-end intelligence work to go out on the streets and try to recruit and run the human sources of information, for example. That was regarded as men's work. After ministers publicly revealed Dame Stella's identity, after her appointment to Director

General in 1992, photographers caught her carrying the weekly shopping, leading to the headline the housewife spy. Eventually, she played along with the media and used the attention to begin a public dialogue about MI5's role in a modern democracy. However, she reflected on how her life changed and was threatened when she assumed her position as head of the service. I was very aware of such threats and particularly after my name became public when I first became Director General of MI5. The decision to publish my name was one that I thoroughly approved of. However, I think we didn't really guess quite how much interest there was going to be, particularly to where I lived and did present a serious threat to our security.

Stella Rimmington also became a successful author of spy thrillers, but her 2001 autobiography led to accusations that she was endangering national security. Dame Stella said she would not be bullied by officials, and the government that had revealed her identity needed to accept she also had a voice. Alice Adderley. Still to come on the Global News Podcast, Every pilot that precede animals, they would say something different. So I think that there may be something to just having a new voice.

I think the wolves are responding to that negatively and running into the trees. Using drones with recorded voices to scare wolves in the United States. The Kremlin has played down President Trump's decision to move U.S. nuclear submarines closer to Russia and warned against what it called nuclear rhetoric. Mr Trump's announcement was in response to nuclear sabre-rattling by the former Russian President Dimitri Medvedev. From Moscow, our Russia editor, Steve Rosenberg, reports. Over the weekend, the Kremlin was silent about Donald Trump's unexpected announcement.

America's president had said he was moving two nuclear submarines closer to Russia after what he called provocative statements by Dmitri Medvedev. Russia's former president had accused him of pushing the U.S. and Russia towards war, and had warned him of Russia's nuclear capabilities. Today, I asked Vladimir Putin's spokesman for his reaction. U.S. submarines are always on combat duty. Dmitri Peskov told me, that's a constant occurrence. I wouldn't want to be drawn into the argument or to comment.

The Kremlin is playing this. down because it doesn't see an increased threat to Russia's security. But it wants the world to know that Mr. Medvedev does not speak for Mr Putin. What is important, of course, Dmitri Peskov said, is President Putin's position. In our country, foreign policy is formulated by the head of state. Later this week, Vladimir Putin is expected to receive Donald Trump's special envoy, Steve Whitkoff. He's due here just days before President Trump's deadline for the Kremlin to end the war in Ukraine expires. Steve Rosenberg.

He is already the richest person in the world, but Elon Musk is in line for another $29 billion thanks to the board of Tesla, which wants to keep him focused on running the electric car firm. The award, which comes after a court-blocked an earlier even bigger pay package, will boost his voting power and help prevent any challenges from activist shareholders. Tesla is currently struggling with sales and falling profits, partly thanks to Elon Musk's move into politics. Our New York business correspondent, Michelle Flurry,

spoke to us from outside a Tesla showroom in Manhattan. We've seen the company's share price fall around, what, 20% so far this year. You mentioned falling car sales. Obviously, there was controversy over some of his political comments and views, and that has kind of affected the company. Now, I'm standing outside a showroom here in the meatpack. Hacking district in Manhattan, and it kind of offers you some clues as to why the board has done what it has. In the window, there are the cars, the cyber truck, but also there is one of the

robots. And that's the thing. Everyone sees the future of Tesla as robots, robotaxies, and AI. And the assumption of the board, and it's a view shared by many Wall Street analysts, is that Mr. Musk is crucial to delivering on that promise. Now, the board includes his brother, other friends of his. Will shareholders be happy with this extra $29 billion? I mean, if you look at history, you've got to assume yes. Here's the thing. If you go back to 2018, there was a pay package that was agreed worth $50 billion.

And that was knocked down by a Delaware judge. And so now we find ourselves with today's pay package, still eye-watering, but not as much as that. At the time, the board put it back to a shareholder vote for a second time, even after the Delaware judge had blocked it saying it was unfair to shareholders, and they approved it for a second time. So you have to assume that shareholders are on board, because if you buy the idea that Mr. Musk is, you know, Tesla,

and if it's going to deliver on robots, there is sort of a strong view amongst many that he is the only one who can deliver that. I mean, the only one. Is this modern business, the type of leader you need, or just him? Look, I think he falls into a very, very rarefied club, right? I don't think there are many other CEOs that could ever command that kind of eye-watering sum. You know, we're thinking more in terms of Mark Zuckerberg at Meta, or, you know, back in the day, Steve Jobs at Apple,

a small cohort who are kind of seen as synonymous with the company and also synonymous with the company's success. Michelle Flurry outside a Tesla showroom in New York City. 80 years ago this week, the US dropped two atomic bombs on Japan. The only time nuclear weapons had been used in war. It's believed more than 200,000 people were killed in the blasts in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Thousands more died in the decades afterwards. Koko Gibson was born in Hiroshima three years after the bombing,

but it had a profound effect on her life and her health. She now lives in Wales where she gives lectures about her experiences. Jordan Dunbar has been speaking to her. Although I was born three years after Hiroshima bombing, seeing people suffering, I felt those events is in me. Because your family had actually experienced the bomb. They were there when it went off. How did it affect them?

Did it affect their health? Definitely. and mentally. Did you lose family afterwards? Yes. My father, nearly 50 years ago and I lost my elder sister, just over 50. And you have suffered from ill health, haven't you, since? I have. Since I was young, I have to go through so many,

especially removal of cancer. You mentioned that it had taken you decades before you spoke to your husband about your experience, but then it took even longer before you wanted to speak publicly. And now I believe you actually give talks in schools in Wales. What's the reaction of those Welsh students when they hear your story? Some people cried. They've never been told at the school or any other sources.

Deterrence is why lots of countries say they need them, the idea that if you have nuclear weapons, that will deter other countries from using nuclear weapons on you. Can you understand that point, I don't understand because holding nuclear weapon is only one reason to kill people as much as possible. It is the 8th anniversary and you've been talking out. What is it you would like people to learn? Group of scientists said it doesn't matter who is bombing whom.

It can be India, Pakistan or NATO and Russia. Once the smoke is released into the atmosphere, it spread globally and affect everyone. We must be absolutely condemned about the use of nuclear weapon, not from the standpoint of ideology, nationalism or ethnic identity, but instead from the universal dimension of humanity. Koko Gibson talking to Jordan Dunbar. Now, she may be one of the most famous actors in the world, but Scarlett Johansson's voice is being used to scare away wolves on the U.S. West Coast,

as Anna Aslam reports. The wolf population in the U.S. has soared since they were reintroduced a Yellowstone National Park in 1995, growing from 300 to 6,000, excluding Alaska. The animals have been attacking cattle and sheep, with farmers often unable to harm the predators because of their protected status. But these attacks have dramatic. decreased in Oregon and California since the U.S. Department of Agriculture began flying drones to scare the wolves off. A team headed by the aptly named Paul Wolf conducts all-night's

takeouts at ranches. When they first started in 2022, they thought a quadricopter with thermal cameras and bright lights would be enough to do the job. But the wolf seemed to think it was a toy and wanted to play. A confused drone pilot said, hey, wolf, get out of here. And it scurried away. told Oregon public broadcasting that human voices are the best deterrent. Every pilot that pursued animals, they would say something different. So I think that there may be something to just having a new voice, a reflection of the voice, what they're saying. I think the wolves are responding to that negatively and running into the trees. But with hopes of one day making the technology automatic, without a dedicated pilot

to tell the wolves off, the team has started using voices from loud film scenes. such as Scarlett Johansson's fight with Adam Driver in Marriage Story. People used to tell me that you were too selfish to be a great artist, and I used to defend you. They were absolutely right. All your best acting is behind you. You're back to being a hack. You gaslighted me.

And Mr. Wolf said they've also experimented with other sounds. We played with using gunshots that's been downloaded from, you know, the internet and a music. They hope they'll soon be able to cut out the middle. middleman. Paul Wolf says they want to give farmers AI enhanced drones that could automatically go out and survey the area on the pre-programmed flight path. Wouldn't it be great to have a drone be able to recognize a wolf threat and then the rancher be notified, hey, there's a wolf out in the pasture or there's a threat out there that he could be able to be texted or communicated somehow to be able

to respond to that. The drones currently have a price tag of $20,000. If they become cheaper and reliable enough to roll out, they could offer the perfect non-violent solution to America's wolf problem. Farmers would be able to fight back with their favorite rock song. That report by Anna Aslam. Finally, to a new party trend in India. Fake weddings. In some Indian cities, events organized by hotels and clubs promised the full experience of a wedding party without the stress, rituals or responsibilities of an actual marriage. Devena Gupta in Delhi told my colleague Andrew Peach more. Let's start by understanding that big, fat, Indian marriage image because these are multi-day affairs and they're expensive, they're elaborate venues that are decked with flowers and lights.

Then there are musical nights where the bride and groomside dance dressed in fancy ethnic wear. There's usually lots of food and drinks, but this concept is about having a bride and a groom which are getting married. youngsters want a similar sort of immersive experience, but they don't want to go through the rituals of wedding. So this is called fake wedding. In fact, I went to a posh club which had recreated this atmosphere and there were at least 50 people and I asked them what brought them there. It's definitely a different experience. While we're going to a wedding with our family, we have a lot of things in our mind like dressing up properly and not being judged by relatives, so it's definitely amazing.

We are embracing the Indian tradition, right? Wearing our Indian outfits, I would say, it's a bit unique. I always imagined a wedding without a bride and a groom, just for fun. If you look at India's wedding industry, it's estimated to be worth over $130 billion, according to an investment advisory firm right research. So while the sector is booming, there are also constraints there, because most weddings take place during the winter months. between November and March.

And we're talking about those North Indian weddings, and they're often at auspicious times if they're Hindu weddings, while the monsoon season is considered off-season. At that time, many of these venues are free. There are vendors like artisans who apply Hanna on people's hand or do flower decorations, and there are event planners, caterers, DJs who do music. They're all available.

They're dependent on earnings from these kind of events. and this particular fake wedding, they're able to tap into these vendors at low costs. And depending on the size of the crowd, those organisers or fake weddings can actually make a lot of money. Davina Gupta. And that is all from us for now, but the Global News podcast will be back very soon.

This edition was mixed by Holly Smith and produced by Alison Davis and Charles Sankery. Our editors, Karen Martin, I'm Oliver Conway. Until next time, goodbye. Thank you.